Genetic basis for panic attacks revealed

The genetic basis for most panic attacks and other devastating anxiety disorders has been discovered. The breakthrough could make it possible to develop drugs that help people conquer their fears.

“It looks like they have found an entirely new mechanism of disease,” says Raymond Crowe, a psychiatrist at the University of Iowa who studies the genetics of panic disorder. “It’s a very important finding.” According to some estimates, more than 10 per cent of people suffer from some form of anxiety disorder.

Xavier Estivill’s team at the Centre for Medical and Molecular Biology in Barcelona was studying families with a history of problems such as panic disorders, agoraphobia (fear of public places) and social phobia.

The researchers discovered that a small region on chromosome 15 was duplicated in 90 per cent of the affected family members.

Advertisement

Neural communication

To make sure this genetic anomaly was not just specific to these families, the researchers analysed 70 unrelated sufferers. Remarkably, 97 per cent had the duplication, which Estivill calls DUP25, compared with only 7 per cent of other individuals.

“The duplicated region contains more than 60 genes,” says Monica Gratacos, a member of the team. Only 23 have been identified so far, she says, but these include genes for proteins that control communication and interaction between neurons. Too much of one or more of these proteins might make the brain oversensitive to stressful situations, the researchers think.

But while having DUP25 greatly increases the risk of anxiety disorders, it doesn’t necessarily condemn you to a life of fear. “The environment is also very important,” says Gratacos. “Even if you have the duplication you may not have any kind of fear [disorder].” In the affected families, for instance, 20 per cent of people with DUP25 had no anxiety illness at all.

The team is now trying to identify exactly which genes on DUP25 lead to anxiety disorders. If they can do this, it might be possible to find drugs that suppress either the genes or their protein products. “It’s not so easy,” says Gratacos. “It will take at least five or ten years.”